Introducing Tucker

Hey, y'all!

As I jump back into blogging, I wanted to introduce a new family member-- Tucker.

Tucker was found on the side of the road back in November at about 3 months of age. I immediately took him in and he has quickly become my bud.

I've always wanted a pup and I definitely got lucky with this guy. He's a great companion- low key, funny behaviors and easy to train. 

Anyway, just thought I would say hi and introduce my pup! Hope you had a great weekend!

Hello, Fall!

Fall has been welcomed with open arms! The temperatures finally fell (only for the weekend, but it still counts!) and the pumpkin flavored items have hit the grocery shelves.

Here are a couple things that I've been enjoying.


Barley & Pumpkin Pudding

I started a cup of barley in the rice cooker and finished cooking it in a mixture of almond milk, pumpkin, walnuts, maple syrup and cinnamon. It thickened up nicely overnight. In the morning, I heated up a portion and topped it with a drizzle of maple syrup.

Perfection.

This was actually my first time cooking barley and I really enjoyed it. It's hearty but still soft/fluffy with a nice mild flavor.


Crisp apples & Homemade applesauce

Apple season is finally here! Sure, apples are available all year long but fall apples are in a league of their own. I've definitely been enjoying a crisp, sweet apple almost daily.

I've also made a delicious batch of crock pot applesauce. So simple and so delicious. I primarily use this as an oatmeal topper. Raw oats, applesauce and a pour of almond milk.

Squash

Acorn and butternut and spaghetti...oh my. The oven has seen a lot of action over the last couple of weeks.


Fall Pancakes

Pumpkin spice pancakes

Cinnamon apple pancakes

Need I say more?


Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Spiced Maple Icing

I saved the best for last.

Holy yum. I'll post a recipe. I think it deserves an entire post. P.S. The leftover spiced maple icing doubled as a coffee sweetener. I was in heaven. 

Clean Slate

Remember when I told you that I would blog everyday? Haha. Clearly, I'm not that good with keeping promises. But, not being a part of the blogosphere makes me sad, so I decided that I will give it another shot. I like to go down fighting. 

I'm slowly settling into this new rhythm. It's busy but fun. I like that I end most days feeling like I actually accomplished something. (Although, some days I end the day with nothing crossed off of my to do list. That happens. Oh well.)

Anyway, I thought I would jump right in and show you some eats! You might notice an egregious use of tortillas. I bought them a few days ago because I really wanted to make a burrito. Now, I am stuck trying to come up with creative ways to use the rest of the package. 

But, the burrito was worth it. 

Refried beans, greens, onions, avocado and walnut "taco meat" all topped with salsa and cashew sour cream. So good. I ate this exact burrito for three meals. Slightly addicted.

This morning I made a quick breakfast wrap with almond butter, pumpkin butter and sliced pears. I wasn't entirely sure this combination would work. But, it was the best I could come up with at 6:30am.

This was also pretty phenomenal. I stuck it in the microwave for about 45 seconds and it was stellar. I'll definitely be making this again. Probably tomorrow.

I also packed a lunch this morning. And, guess what? It had a tortilla in it. I told you that the tortilla usage was outta control!

It was similar to the burrito, but I used mashed black beans (ran out of the refried) and added some baked tofu. I also put the salsa in a jar to take to work and use with every bite. It was good and all but I am definitely getting tired of these tortillas. Eating my meals in log shape is so not my thing. 

P.s. I still have like 5 tortillas. KMN. If you can think of something cool to do with them, please leave a comment! I am (obviously) out of ideas. 

A Good Start

Happy August! Can you believe that the summer is almost over? I can hear grade school children whining everywhere. 

This was my first summer as an adult. No school, no internships, no freedom. But, no complaints either. 

Anyway, I told you in my last post that I wanted to start blogging again to keep me accountable on my road to better health. So, here I am, blogging. I'm a little rusty but it'll kick into full gear soon enough.

Breakfast started with a green smoothie!

I haven't done green smoothies in a while but I'm incredibly happy to be adding them back in. 

I've been making them a little differently. Instead of all fruits and greens, I've been adding hemp protein powder and green powder. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about these additions. But, for now, they are making regular appearances in my smoothies. 

Work got the best of me today. I ended up eating a Clif bar around 2pm as lunch. 

I'm not proud of it, but its better than nothing. 

I came home at a reasonable hour and ate the first thing that I saw-- some bread and hummus. I was relaxing on the couch when I got a visitor! Rishab (my brother) and my mom drove in to visit!

Lovely.

It was a fun surprise. They went out to eat while I painted my nails. (Yes, I chose painting my nails over going to dinner with them. Don't judge.) When they got home, I hit the gym for a 30 min treadmill workout. I got home close to 10pm and stretched, chatted and snacked on some cold watermelon. 

Thank goodness for that green smoothie this morning. Without it, my day would have been severely lacking in nutrients. And, to tell you the truth, without having written up this blog post, I would have never noticed. 

Blogging, Take 3

Hello, friends! It's been a while. A long, long while. Almost 3 months, actually. I've missed you!

I last left you with a post on graduation. Looking back, it feels like a lifetime ago. I started work the Monday after graduation. My job is pretty amazing. I have been doing new, exciting things everyday. I'm growing and learning and just plain loving it! It is a highly demanding and incredibly stressful job but I wouldn't change it for the world. I feel truly blessed for finding my place in the world. The path was a little rough (um, yeah, a lot rough) but I thank the big guy everyday for bringing me to this place in my life.

Anyway, my work life is incredible. You know what's not? My life life. My social life, my health, my well being, etc. I've put it all on the back burner because of this job. I've also given myself passes on skipping workouts, meals and green smoothies all in the name of work/transitioning into my new role. But, things need to change. I have taken about 20 steps backward on my road to health. My eating habits have taken a turn for the worse. Processed foods have become the name of the game. And, working out? Well, does walking to the parking garage count as cardio? No? Darn!

Let me fill you in on my life as it stands...

I wake up at about 5:30am, shower, dress and head to work. I'm at work by 7am-- no breakfast, no workout. I usually have one or two urgent emails that require action and I start on those tasks right away. I work away. Occasionally, I'll take a break to go refill my water bottle. Around lunchtime, if I'm lucky, I'll go to the cafeteria with a friend to eat. If I'm not that lucky, I might eat at my desk. More often then not, I just skip lunch in order to finish up whatever I need to. Things usually calm down around 3 or 4pm when I grab a soda from the lounge and a bag of pretzels or almonds or an energy bar. A couple nights a week, there are late meetings or evening community events that I have to attend. On average, I am home between 6:30pm and 7:30pm, some days closer to 9pm. I get home, eat and fall asleep about 20 mins later. Fridays are the only exception to this routine. I usually don't roll into the office until 8am and most everyone, including me, is out by 4pm. We also usually go out to lunch. Needless to say, Fridays are generally unproductive and pretty fun.

This schedule won't get much better. But, I can learn to manage it better. This is how the rest of my life is going to look. Neglecting my health hurts nobody but me. I've got to learn how to add in healthy living to the mix. The sooner, the better.

I know things won't happen overnight. It's going to take time and a lot of effort. But, I know that this lifestyle is not sustainable and not healthy. So, why blog? Because blogging keeps me accountable. It pushes me to make better decisions. It's also a great creative outlet, and I could definitely use one of those. 

I'm pumped to be sharing this journey with you! I know that a lot of you are probably in the same place, which is of great comfort to me. But, I'm finally ready to take a step in the right direction. It's time.

I'm a Graduate!

Two years sure did fly by. Now, I've got credentials. My name is officially followed by "MPH". Exciting stuff. I'm ready to enter the real world. But, I can't take myself too seriously.

Until tomorrow,
Prathiba

Avocado Chocolate Pudding Fail

I've heard a lot about avocado chocolate pudding. I've seen recipes posted all over the blogosphere. So, I thought I would finally give it a shot. 

I did follow a recipe I found on a blog but I won't tell you which one. It was awful. It tasted like pureed avocado and looked like um...well, you tell me.

I know I'm not much of a food stylist but there was very little to work with on this one.

Anyway, I didn't want to waste it. So, I added almond milk, raw oats and some sliced bananas. (I added almost three whole bananas to make this thing palatable.)

I gave it a good stir and it became a thick, creamy, oat pudding of sorts.

Decision made. No more avocado pudding. I'm not entirely sure what the hype was about, but no bueno.